


The last breath

by Thats_me



Category: The Hunger Games
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-09
Updated: 2018-01-09
Packaged: 2019-03-02 21:17:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 1,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13326528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thats_me/pseuds/Thats_me
Summary: What if the hunger games hadn’t ended the way it had? What if the games took an unexpected turn of events?





	1. Katniss

I swear to god, I’ve never seen anyone move so fast. Cato dived for Peeta and pulled him towards himself, before I could even reach for an arrow.

He held him in a choke hold and Peetas face began to turn read.

“You shoot me I bring him down too!” He yelled stepping to the edge of the cornucopia. “ You won either way. Either I kill him and you shoot kill me, or you kill me and I bring him down with me! YOU WIN! DISTRICT 12 HAD IT’S WINNER!” He began to scream and yell, as if the words were physically hurting him.

My heart pounded in my chest. I noticed Peeta subtly pointing at district twos hand. At first I didn’t understand, but then it clicked. I withdrew a bow, aimed and fired. I hit Cato in the center of his hand, lodging an arrow deep in his skin. For a moment he looked confused. Peeta chose that as his moment to take action and pushed him over the edge. The mutts were quick, piling onto his body. I shot an arrow at his squirming body, he shouldn’t die in pain. The cannon fired marking the last fallen tribute of the 74th annual hunger games.  
“ nice shot” Peeta said  
The mutts fled and Peeta and I climbed down from the cornucopia. We waited for something, anything, to happen.  
Eventually the speaker came on, and a man spoke.  
“I regret to inform you, but we were not permitted to change our previous rule, there can only be one champion. May the odds be ever in you favour” Peeta reaches for his knife, without thinking I bring up my bow. He looks slightly hurt as he drops it to the ground. I lower my bow. “I won’t do it.” He reports. “I’ll think of something.”


	2. Peeta

I know that our time is running out. I think of my family who have never cared what happened to me, I think of my brothers who decided I wasn’t worth volunteering for. I think of how strong Katniss is, how when she sings the birds stop to listen. I think of how it would kill me to kill her. I know that she will be the one to return to district 12. Not me.  
“Kill me,” I repeat “you have so much to go back to. You have a family, what bout your mom, what about Prim?” I say, hoping I hide my cowardice well.  
“I won’t take you away from yours either.” She whispers  
“Fine you won’t have to” I reach for my knife. I love her so much, I’m willing to die for her well being.  
“Wait!” She exclaims just before my fingers touch the handle. “ pass me the berries, come on quick!” She harshly whispers.  
“Katniss, I won’t let you.” I state  
“No it’s not that, just do it quick before they notice!” She hisses.  
Well, fuck. I’m so crazy about her that I’m willing to do the most absord things.  
I silently reach for my pocket and withdraw the bag containing the poisonous berries.


	3. Katniss

I grab the bag out of Peetas hand. I won’t let him die for me, knowing that if I did everyday I would think of him.  
It’s not that I love him. Or even particularly like him. But I know when someone’s in pain. And he is broken.  
I pull at the strings that tie the bag closed.  
“Katniss what are y-“ he stutters  
“Shhhhhhhhh” I say softly  
He shuts up but watches my hands. I fumble with the bag and think of my life back in 12. I think of Prim and Mom, I wonder how they’ll survive. I think of Gale and how he’s always been there for me and how this will crush him. Greasy Sae. Rue. My Father. The peace keepers. And the capital that has sentenced me to my death.  
I pull apart the bag and look into his eyes.  
“I’m sorry, but I won’t deprive you of your life. I am not the capital. And I refuse to give into it’s ways.” I whisper  
“KATNISS DONT!” He yell realizing my plan. Peeta reaches for me and grabs my wrist. There are tears in his eyes.  
But it’s too late. The berries are already in my mouth. 

I hope they’ll understand.


	4. Peeta

At first I don’t move. The arena suddenly feels large and empty. She did it. I can’t believe she fucking did it.  
I drop to my knees and cradle her dead body. Tears dripping down my face and landing on her torso.  
I can’t believe she did it.  
My nose is running and my eyes are puffy, I’ve lost the love of my life. The capital pull us up towards their hover craft, as I reach for the berries. But just as I was when she took her life, I’m too late. I try to shove the berries down my throat, a world without her isn’t a world worth living in. But hands pry at me and don’t allow the berries anywhere near my lips.  
Katniss. Warrior. Brave. Kind. Considerate. Strong. The girl on fire. I wouldn’t be here without her. I would have bled to death, died from starvation or dehydration. And she went ahead and killed herself. I cry loud and ugly over her. I don’t care if the whole capital can see me. I loved her. I love her.


	5. Peeta

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 38 years later...

I wonder if she knew. I wonder if she knew, thirty eight years ago, that I would think of her everyday. That the interviews and tours were torture, and that seeing her family almost killed me. Or that I would join haymitch and drink. And drink. That my family wouldn’t so much as look at me when I returned, I’d disgusted them. Deprived them of a hero. I wonder if she new, that by killing herself all she did was permit me to live on in misery, not willing to kill myself since she died for me to live. Giving my life the slightest value. I wonder if she knew that I would never love anyone else. Did she know that I would plummet into depression? That Gale would die in the mines. that’s Prim would never be happy again.  
  
That all she did was spark a rebellion. She wasn’t the first to take her own life in the games, but it was her last words that saved us. At first the capital didn’t release the recordings- tried to make it look like she had died from the an infection. But between my story and one wannabe-hotshot-journalist/ extreme hacker in 3 the truth came out.The districts turned and the capital fell. Prim took charge of the rebels.  
She is not the same little girl that Katniss rescued from the clutches of president Snow. A fire burns where her heart used to be and a black pit replaced her soul. The little duck drowned.  
She declared war on the capital.  
I watched from the side lines. Too scared that I would take her life too. To be fair the heartless woman that stands in her place is more then cape able of handling herself. But so was Katniss.  
I can honestly say that I am desperately in love with Katniss Everdeen, and have been since the day I met her. She will forever live on in my heart. But that won’t be enough, she deserved the world and got no more than an almond.   
With that, I take another sip of my beer.


	6. Gale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set before the last chapter, during gales time in the mines.

He never deserved her. Of course he knows that. But no amount of guilt can bring Katniss back from the death. But hating Peeta Mellark does make me feel better. 

I might be too hard on Peeta, after all he was a good guy. He’s had it rough too. Abused by his mother (even though my parents were poor they never raised a hand against me), reaped and survived, lost his leg in the process, and he lost the girl of his dreams. So did I.

I think about her a lot when I’m in the mines. She’s everywhere, the canaries that stood still when she sung now scream warning cries, the coal that decorated her costume when she first arrived at the capital, the mine itself that triggered her bravery when our dads pasted away. The only difference between us after their deaths was that she had to feed everyone, I had mom. She always tried her best and did bring in a little money. I mean it definitely wasn’t easy on me but it was harder on her. She wrestled with more crap in one day than I do in a week. 

Suddenly the birds stop singing in warning and I hear a crash, a few people scream. The air is thick and my eyes tear up.

I cry out to Katniss when the walls cave in, crushing my lungs.

At least I’ll see her again.


End file.
